Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic)

The role of Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) takes a leadership responsibility for providing services, programs and resources that support UOW staff and students and foster innovative teaching and learning, to enhance University-wide educational practice.

OCTAL Awards Announcement

The Deputy Vice-Chancellor Academic, Professor Joe Chicharo, extends his congratulations to all staff who submitted a proposal for the Vice-Chancellor's Awards for Outstanding Contribution to Teaching and Learning (OCTAL) in 2018. The OCTAL Awards identify, promote and reward high quality teaching practice at the University of Wollongong.

Being nominated for an OCTAL Award is valuable recognition from peers, students and alumni. There were 98 colleagues successfully nominated in this round of awards.

Applicants completed a rigorous application and peer review process. Congratulations to the following 10 OCTAL Award recipients who will be recognised at the Vice-Chancellor's Awards Ceremony to be held in August.

Academic Integrity Program

Vice-Chancellor's

UOW Program OCTAL Award

Sanja Pupovac

Faculty of BUS

OCTAL Award

Sasha Nikolic

Faculty of EIS

OCTAL Award

Brad Stappenbelt

Faculty of EIS

OCTAL Award

Recovery Camp Program

Faculty of SMAH

Program OCTAL Award

Peter Anderson

Faculty of SS

OCTAL Award

Xiaoping Gao

Faculty of LHA

OCTAL Award

Mara Davis

Faculty of LHA

Sessional OCTAL Award (Shared)

Michelle Gaddes

Faculty of LHA

Sessional OCTAL Award (Shared)

Pranit Anand

UOW College

OCTAL Award

As OCTAL Award recipients, these colleagues will also become eligible for Fellowship of the Wollongong Academy of Tertiary Teaching and Learning Excellence (WATTLE).

Click here for more information on the OCTAL Awards and a full 2018 OCTAL Awards Report.

Innovative Outreach Programs Recognised in National Teaching Awards

The University of Wollongong’s Outreach and Pathways Program was recently recognised as one of the best university programs in Australia, at a ceremony in Melbourne. The team was named a winner for Programs that Enhance Learning, in the category of Widening Participation, at the Australian Awards for University Teaching on 14 December 2017 (link to press release).

Federal Minister for Education the Hon Simon Birmingham announced the annual awards on behalf of the Department of Education and Training.

The UOW Outreach and Pathways Program aims to build awareness of higher education among primary and high school students, as well as those who have left school and are considering university study. It opens up the world of higher education and captures young students’ interest through three key innovative programs: Learning Labs, In2Uni, and Pathways to Higher Education. The team are passionate about helping young students engage with education and foster a love of lifelong learning. The programs bring together UOW’s metropolitan and regional campuses, and build awareness of the importance of higher education in rural communities.

The Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic), Professor Joe Chicharo, said the award recognised the integral role the Outreach and Pathways Program plays in helping young students to imagine their future at university. “Programs such as Learning Labs and In2Uni are vital to expanding the minds of primary and high students to the possibilities of higher education. Particularly in regional communities, where higher education can feel out of reach for many young students.”

“Outreach and Pathways breaks down the barriers to university and ensures every child who wishes to eventually attend university is provided with the skills and tools they need to achieve those dreams. This national award is a testament to the Outreach and Pathways team’s hard work and enthusiasm and recognises the importance of this program to the University.”

The DVCA and the University extend their congratulations to the entire team on this prestigious award.

Aligned to the University’s strategic directions, the projects address a number of priority areas that include:

developing further insights into and improving the practice of blended learning

developing and evaluating specific technology-enhanced learning tools and resources for students and staff

using learning analytics to inform course design and delivery

developing insights and resources to improve multi-site delivery, and

investigating work-integrated learning practices.

In 2018, Learning, Teaching and Curriculum (LTC) will be offering a more structured and supported approach to the ESDF project teams. The 2018 ESDF Action Learning Program is designed to bring the project teams together as they develop innovative solutions to learning and teaching challenges within their disciplines. The aim of this Program is to provide the space and time for the teams to:

reflect on what they are learning

trouble-shoot challenges with their peers

network and share with other leaders in learning and teaching

seek additional support where necessary as they work towards the desired outcomes for their project.

document their learning experience to develop sharable case studies for the ESDF website

support and encourage local dissemination of the projects’ processes and outcomes

Beginning with a Sharing and Networking Lunch in February, the teams will be brought together for a series of catch-ups during the year.

It is expected that providing structured support with addressing project challenges and creating sharable case studies will directly address two key recommendations of the ESDF Review conducted in the first half of 2017: to support the teams and increase the visibility of the projects, the teams and their outcomes.

The Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) has announced the Faculty of Business and the Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health as the inaugural Indigenous Knowledges Grant recipients for 2017. In a collaboration between the Office of the PVC (Inclusion & Outreach) and the division of Learning, Teaching and Curriculum (LTC) each faculty has been awarded $50, 000 to embed Indigenous knowledges and perspectives into their curricula. Additionally, the Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences has been awarded $10, 000 to evaluate their previous ground-breaking work undertaken as part of their OLT grant ‘Incorporating Indigenous Perspectives into Engineering Education’.

To date, the embedding of alternate perspectives into mainstream tertiary curriculum has, for the best part, followed non-Aboriginal approaches. Jindaola, however is a new and exciting initiative, developed by LTC in consultation with local Elders and Knowledge holders that follows an approach modelled on traditional Aboriginal systems for maintaining knowledge integrity. Jindaola brings together the grant recipients, LTC and Aboriginal community in a collaborative and authentic knowledge exchange for the purposes of achieving the grant outcomes.

On the 20th of July 2017, Indigenous Knowledges Grant recipients were welcomed to their first Jindaola workshop called ‘Joining the Journey’ held at the Illawarra Aboriginal Corporation (IAC) in Wollongong. The day consisted of sharing through yarning circles and a combination of networking activities. The objective of the gathering was to allow teams an initial appreciation of an Aboriginal way of maintaining knowledge integrity, and to give each Faculty time to identify methods for ‘mapping their landscapes’ around appropriate Indigenous knowledges and perspectives relevant to their disciplinary areas. This initial gathering was engaging and emotive, and established a strong sense of enthusiasm and collegiality amongst the teams. ‘Joining the Journey’ being only the first of 5 formal gatherings in Jindaola, gave a great foundational understanding to those involved on how to conduct future engagements with Aboriginal Elders, Knowledge Holders and Communities around knowledge creation, development and protocol. This approach to embedding will provide opportunities for students to participate in projects in Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander communities as part of the UOW curriculum model.

Citations Announcement

The Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic), Professor Joe Chicharo, congratulates Associate Professor Shady Cosgrove (Faculty of Law, Humanities and the Arts), the First Year Chemistry Team (Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health) and the Recovery Camp Team (Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health) on receiving National Citations for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning as part of the 2017 Australian Awards for University Teaching.

A/Prof Shady Cosgrove has been awarded a citation for Inspiring creative writing students to develop a resilient (re-)writing practice beyond formal assessment that relies on feedback and ‘failing better’.

The First Year Chemistry Team comprising team members A/Prof Glennys O’Brien and Dr Simon Bedford were recognised for A team partnership approach to curriculum transformation – creating successful pathways for large diverse student cohorts taking undergraduate science degree programs.

Team members of the Recovery Camp Team, Prof Lorna Moxham, Mr Christopher Patterson, Ms Ellie Taylor, Dr Dana Perlman and Dr Renee Brighton were awarded their citation for Influencing and enhancing student learning through Recovery Camp – an immersive workplace experience shared with people with a mental illness.

National Citations are awarded to those who have made a significant contribution to the quality of student learning in a specific area of responsibility over a sustained period. They recognise the diverse contributions made by individuals and teams to the quality of student learning in the Higher Education sector.